Lady&#39;s undergarment



19 5. LASKIN V r 2,293,346

LADY S UNDERGARMENT Filed cm. 5, 1939 I 3 Sh-efs-Shet 1 I\ 22a 21 i215 13 i 1 RIGHT LE6 LEFT LEG 2 7 I v""" D 38 15 LEFT LEG,

RIGHT LEG 40w LEFT LE6 RIGHT LEG Fig. 4

INVENTOR. .Belya/min Laskin/ BY 1 O i I Cam-1, M W

ATTORNEY! Aug. 18, 1942. B, LA N 2,293,346

LADY'S UNDERGARMENT Filed Oct. 3, 1939 s sheets-shed 3 5 TOP OFBACK 5 SAC/(RIFFHT EDGE 41 I BACK LEFT EDGE BOTTOM-P1611 rams 4w FRONT- LEFTED6 21 TOP OF FRONT Fig. 16

INVENTOR. Beryamzn Laskin ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 18, 1942 UNITED STATES serum or es LADYS UNDERGARMENT Benjamin Laskin, Philadelphia, Pa.

Application October 3, 1939, Serial No. 297,730

Claims.

This invention relates to womens undergarments intended to function as panties. Undergarments for this purpose now in general use are of two types. In the first of these types the undergarment consists of a tubular body portion which terminates in two tubular legs. In the second of these types the undergarment is in the form of a loin cloth.

Both types are objectionable because they cannot conveniently be worn with a corset or girdle. This is primarily because the panty must be worn under the corset or girdle in order to obtain a smooth fitin the dress. With the :panty in this position the girdle or corset must be removed when the wearer finds it necessary to go to the lavatory.

The in cloth type of panty is further objectionable because it does not prevent chafing.

Certain modifications of the tubular body portion and leg type are further objectionable because the seams run along the inside of the legs and irritate the legs of the wearer at that point,

particularly if the wearer is inclined to chafe between the legs.

It is one of the objects of this invention to produce an undergarment intended to function as a panty which will be free from the objectionable features hereinabove set forth.

Another object of this invention is to use only two pieces of cloth in producing an undergarment which will function as a parity, which can be worn with a girdle, and which will prevent chafing.

Another object of this invention is to reduce the number of sewing operations necessary to join together the cloth components of an undergarment which will function as a panty, which can be worn with a girdle, and which will prevent chafing.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new method for producing an undergarment intended to function as a panty.

For the purpose of illustratin my invention, I have shown in the drawings which form a part hereof, and will now describe the novel garment and the steps of the novel method followed in producing the same.

Figure 1 is a perspective View of the novel garment. (Note: Th right and left elements specified in the drawings and specification are to be understood as being taken from the viewpoint of the wearer of the garment, and not from the viewpoint of the observer.) 7

Figure 2 is a section taken on the line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a front view of a torso clad in the novel garment. (The garment is shown on a smaller scale than in Figures 1 and 2;)

Figure 4 is a rear view of said torso clad in said garment. (The scale in Figure 4 is the same as that shown in Figure 3.)

Figure 5 is a plan View, drawn to a smaller scale than that used in making Figures 1 and 2, of one of the two identical pieces which together form the body portion of the novel garment.

Figure 6 is a plan view, drawn to the same scale as Figure 5, of one of the two identical pieces which serve as reinforcing members in the crotch and a portion of the legs of the novel garment These pieces may be omittedif desired.

Figure 7 is a plan view drawn to the same scale as Figure 5, showing the two body pieces and the two reinforcing pieces in position for the first stitching operation in sewing together the garstitching operation. The pieces have been separated at certain points and curled back at others. Figure 11 is a section taken along the line H-l'l 0f Figure l0.

Figure 12 is a section taken along the line [2-42 of Figure 10. V

Figure 13 is a plan view, drawn to the same scale as Figure 5, showing the garment almost at the end of the operation of stitching down the reinforcing pieces. A corner of one of the reinforcing pieces has not as yet beenstitched down and is curled back. I

Figure 14 is a section on the line [4-44 of Figure 13.

Figure 15 is a section on the line l5-l5 of Figure 13.

Figure 16 is a plan View, drawn to the same scale as Figure 5, of the completed garment with the' belt and the major portion of the belt attaching straps entirely broken away and with the leg straps broken away intermediate their ends. The tape has been broken away at one point to show otherwise hidden parts.

Figure 17 is asection taken on the line i"lll of Figure 16.

Figure 18 is a section taken on the line Iiiof Figure 16-.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, wherein similar reference numerals denote similar parts, reference numeral I designates the novel garment as a unit. The garment I consists of a bifurcated body member 2 open at the sides for the entire length thereof, a waist encircling belt 3, straps 4 and 4a which connect the corners 2I and 2m respectively of the front wall I2 of the body member 2 with the waist encircling belt 3, straps 5 and 5a which connect the corners 22 and 22a respectively of the rear wall I3 of the body member 2 with the waist encircling belt 3, and the leg attaching straps 6 and I.

The bifurcated body member 2 comprises the spaced apart walls I2 and I3 which merge into the crotch I4 and combine to form the right leg member I5 and the left leg member I6 below said crotch I4. The wall I2 is the front wall of the body member 2 and the wall I3 constitutes the rear wall of the body member 2. The right edge 38 of the front wall I2 defines the right edge of the front of the garment body member 2. The right edge 40 of the rear wall I2 is substantially parallel to and spaced from the edge 3-3 and defines the right edge of the rear of the garment body member 2. The left edge 38a of the front wall I2 defines the left edge of the front of the garment body member 2. And the left edge 49a of the rear wall I3 is substantially parallel to and spaced from the edge 38a and defines the left edge of the rear of the garment element 2. The leg members I5 and I6 each consists of a single piece of material. There are no between the leg vertical seams in either of the leg members I5 or I6. The crotch portion I I and a portion of the inner wall of the leg members I5 and I6 are reinforced by the reinforcing pieces I8 and I8a. These reinforcing pieces, although desirable, are not necessary. They may therefore be omitted if desired. The body member 2 may be made of any suitable material. In the present commercial embodiment of my invention the body member 2 is made of knit cloth.

The body member 2 does not completely encircle the body of the wearer. Instead, it merely covers a portion of the wearers front and back immediately above the crotch and about half of the surface of the wearers legs for a short distance below the crotch. I have found that this coverage is enough to give the wearer the necessary protection and comfort in all activities demanding freedom of movement and that it will prevent between the leg chafing.

The belt 3, the straps 4, 4a, 5. 5a, 6 and I are made of elastic material. (In the present commercial embodiment of my garment, the elastic material used is Lastex.) The strap 4 is fixedly attached at its upper end to the belt 3 at the point I9 and at its lower end to the right hand corner 21 of the front wall I2. (Note: Unless otherwise specified, the attaching means is stitching.) The strap 4a is attached at its upper end to the belt 3 at the point I9a and at its lower end to the left hand corner 2 Ia of the front wall I2. The strap 5 is attached at its upper end to the belt 3 at the point 20 and at its lower end to the right hand corner 22 of the rear wall I3. The strap 5a is fixedly attached at its upper end to the belt 3 at the point 26a and at its lower end to the left hand corner 22a of the rear wall I3. The leg attaching strap 6 is fixedly attached at one of its ends to the corner 23 of the right leg I5 and at its other end to the corner 24 of said leg I5. The leg attaching strap I is split into the two pieces 8 and 9. The piece 8 is bent upon itself to form a loop the free ends of which are fixedly attached to the corner 25 of the left leg I6. The piece 9 is attached at one of its ends to the corner 26 of the leg I6 and has attached thereto at the free end 52 thereof the male fastener element Ii The prong II of the fastener element It is received within the bight 21 of the looped piece El. (The split leg attaching strap I in combination with the open side construction of the garment enables the wearer of the garment to go to the lavatory without removing either the garment or the corset or girdle.)

I make the novel garm nt by the following novel method:

I first out two identical body pieces IT and I'Ia, each in the shape shown in Figure 5. In the event that reinforcing pieces are used, I also out two identical reinforcing pieces Iii and Ilia, each in the shape shown in Figure 6.

Assuming that the garment is to be made with reinforcing pieces, I now place the pieces upon each other in the position shown in Figure 7 where the body piece Ila rests upon the body piece II, the reinforcing piece [3a rests upon the body piece Ila, and the reinforcing piece I3 rests upon the reinforcing piece Ita. I now attach together the pieces Il, Ila, IBa and I3 by a line of stitching 28 which, as shown in Figure 6, runs along the substantially semicircular edge 36 of the body piece I7, 330. of the body piece I'Ia, 29a of the reinforcing piece IGa, and 2% of the reinforcing piece 18. (This line of stitching 28 defines the median line of the completed garment. As is clear from Figures 2, 13 and 15, the line of stitching 28 is seen on the inner face of the completed garment with the exception of the distance where it is covered by the reinforcing piece I8. On the outer face of the completed garment, the line of stitching 23 defines the median line 3i.)

I now turn the garment pieces N, Na and the reinforcing pieces I8 and Iiia about the line of stitching 28 as an axis and cause them to assume their respective positions shown in Figure 13. (It is to be noted that in this position the face 32 of the piece I8 contacts the face 4% of the body piece ll. It is further to be noted that the edge 31 of the body piece Ii and the edge 3Z'a of the body piece Il'a now form a continuous substantially straight line which becomes the upper edge of the front wall of the garment. Similarly, the edge H of the body piece I! and the edge Ma of the body piece IIa form a substantially straight line which becomes the upper edge of the rear wall of the garment.)

The edges 33 and 34 of the reinforcing piece I8 are then attached to the body piece I? by the lines of stitching 35. Similarly, the edges 33a and 3 la of the reinforcing piece I8a are attached to the body piece Ila by the lines of stitching 35a. (The appearance of the garment towards the end of this operation is shown in Figure 13. The stitching operation is not shown as completed in order to permit a corner of the reinforcing pieces to be curled back.)

Thereafter, the dart 3-6 is formed by bringing the point 58 up to the point t! and stitching the line of stitches 49 along the fold line which is formed in the manner well known in the art. The dart 36a is similarly formed by bringing the point dia up to the point 13 and stitching the line of stitches 43a along the fold line which is formed in the manner well known in the art. (It is to be noted that before the dart 36 is formed that edge of the piece II in which the notches 41 and 48 are formed is not a straight line. Instead, it is a bent line formed by the edges 45 and 46. After the dart 36 is formed, the edges 45 and 46 merge to form the substantially straight edge 40 in the finished garment. The edge 46a is a substantially straight line formed by the merger'of the edges 45a and 45a after the dart 36a is formed. The darts 36 and 36a merely cause the garment to fit more snugly. They may be omitted, particularly if a somewhat looser fit is desired. In the event that the darts are omitted, then a straight edge exactly the same as the edge 38 is substituted for the edges 45 and 46, and a straight edge exactly the same as the edge 38a is substituted for the edges 45a and 46a).

Thereafter, the edges 31a, 31, 38, 39,40, 4|, 4|a, 40a, 39a and 38a are reinforced and finished off by attaching thereto the tape 42 by the lines of stitching 43. In the act of attaching the tape 42, the operator also attaches the lower end of the strap 4 to the corner 2|, one of the ends of the strap 6 to the corner 23, the other of the ends of the strap 6 to the corner 24, the lower end of the strap to the corner 22, the lower end of the strap 5a to the corner 22a, the fixed end of the strap 9 to the corner 26, the fixed end of the strap 8 to the corner 25, and the lower end of the strap 4a to the corner 2Ia. The upper end of the strap 4 is then attached to the bolt 3 at the point I9, that of the strap 4a is attached to the belt 3 at the point lfia, that of the strap 5a is attached to the belt 3 at the point 291a. and that of the strap 5 is attached to the belt 3 at the point 2|], thus completing the garment. (If desired, the aforesaid upper ends of the straps 4, 4a, 5a and 5 may be attached to the belt 3 before the respective lower ends of these straps are attached to the corners 2|, 2|a, 22a, and 22.)

As is evident from an examination oi Figure 16, the finished garment when spread fiat is in the form of an octagon having straps attached to each of the corners thereof. The edges 31 and 31a combine to form one of the eight sides of said octagon, the edge 38 forms a second of the eight sides of said octagon, the edge 39 forms a third of said sides, the edge 4!! forms the fourth of said sides, the edges 4| and 4Ia combine to form the fifth of said sides, the edge 46a forms the sixth of said sides, the edge 39a forms the seventh of said sides, and the edge 38a forms the eighth of said sides. and held in the wearing position shown in Figures 1, 2, and 4 the elements shown in Figure 16 will assume the positions and shape shown in Figures 1 to 4 where the edges 31 and 31a of the body pieces I1 and Ho have become the upper edge of the front of the garment body member 2, where the edges M and Me of the body pieces I1 and I'Ia have become the upper edge of the rear of the garment body member 2, where the edge 38 of the body piece I! has become the right edge of the front of the garment body member 2, where the edge 39 of said body piece I! has become the lower edge of the right leg l5 of the body member 2, where the edge 48 of said body piece IT has become the right edge of the rear of the garment body member 2, where the edge 40a of the body piece Ila has become the left edge of the rear of the garment body member 2, where the edge 39a of the body piece I la has become the lower edge of the left leg I6 of When the belt 3 is lifted the body member 2, where the edge 38a. of the body piece IIa. has become the left edge of the front of the body member 2, where the middle portion of the line of stitching 28 has become the center of the crotch I4, where the right leg 'member has been formed by that portion of the body piece H which is below the crotch line I4, and where the left leg member has been formed by that portion of the body piece I'Ia which is below said crotch line I4.

As is shown by the dot and dash lines ab and be in Figure 5, each of the two identical garment body pieces I! and Na may be considered as being substantially in the form of a pentagon which has a substantially semicircular cut-out formed therein in the upper part thereof for a distance intermediate the outer ends of the two upper sides. (For the purpose of this assump tion, the edge 39a is considered as the base of the pentagon formed by the garment piece He, the.

edge 38a as one of the sides of said pentagon, the edges a and 46a as forming a bent line which constitutes the other of the sides of the pentagon, and the edges 31a and Ma as the two top sides of the pentagon intermediate the ends 2 50a and 5| a of which has been formed the semicircular cutout represented by the edge 30a. Similarly, the edge 39 is considered as the base of the pentagon formed by the garment piece II, the edge 38 as one of the sides of said pentagon, the edges 45 and 46 as forming a bent line which constitutes the other of the sides of the pentagon, and the edges 3'I and 4| as the two top sides of said pentagon intermediate the ends 56 and 5| of which has been formed the semicircular cutout bounded by the edge 36.)

Definition-The term substantially semicir cular cutout, as used in the specification and claims, is to be understood as referring to the cutout in the body pieces I1 and I'Ia defined by the lines 30 and 30a or the equivalent of such 'a cutout.

As is evident by considering Figure 6 as modified by the dot and dash line de, each of the two identical reinforcing pieces I8 and IBa may be considered as being substantially in the form of a trapezoid having a concave upper edge instead of a straight upper edge.

The foregoing description is to be understood as being for the purpose of illustration only and not limitation since many changes may be made in the structure herein shown without departing from the spirit of my invention. It is therefore my desire that the claims which are hereunto appended for the purpose of describing my invention be limited only by the prior art.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and useful is:

1. The method of forming an undergarment which consists of the steps of cutting two blanks each substantially pentagonal in shape and each having a semicircular cutout formed therein intermediate the outer ends of two successive sides; positioning one of said blanks upon the other so that the substantially semicircular edge of one of said blanks coincides with the substantially semicircular edge of the other of said blanks; joining said blanks together along said substantially semicircular bounding edges; reversely turning said attached blanks along said line of jointure to form an octagonal element; and at taching a waist encircling belt and leg attaching strapsto said octagonal element.

2. The method of forming an undergarment which consists in cutting two substantiall pentagonal blanks each having a substantially semicircular cutout formed therein intermediate the outer ends of two successive sides; then positioning one of said blanks upon the other so that the substantially semicircular edge of one of said blanks coincides with the substantially semicircular edge of the other of said blanks; then joining said blanks together along said substantial- 1y semicircular edges; then reversely turning said attached blanks about said line of jointure as an axis to form an octagonal element wherein said line of jointure is substantially at right angles to and substantially bisects onepair of the four pairs of parallel sides of said octagonal element and wherein said line of jointure is between and parallel to that pair of parallel sides of said octagonal element which is at right angles to the first of said pairs; then attaching belt attaching straps to the corners of said octagon at the ends of said sides which are perpendicular to said line of jointure and leg attaching straps to the corners of said octagon at the ends of said sides which are parallel to said line of jointure.

3. The method of forming an undergarment which consists of the steps of cutting two substantially pentagon-a1 blanks each having a substantially semicircular cutout formed therein intermediate the outer ends of two successive sides; positioning one of said blanks upon the other so that the substantially semicircular edge of one of said blanks coincides with the substantially semicircular edge of the other of said blanks; cutting two substantially trapezoidal blanks each with a concave upper edge; positioning each of said trapezoidal blanks upon said pentagonal blanks so that said concave edge of each of said trapezoidal blanks fall along said registering semicircular edges of said pentagonal blanks and the base of each of said trapezoidal blanks falls along the registering bases of said pentagonal blanks; joining said pentagonal and trapezoidal blanks together along said registering semicircular and concave edges; reversely turning said attached blanks about said line of jointure as an axis to form an octagonal element wherein said line of jointure is substantially at right angles to and substantially bisects one pair of the four pairs of parallel sides of said octagonal element and wherein said line of jointure is between and parallel to that pair of parallel sides of said octagonal element which is at right angles to the first of said pairs and wherein each of said trapezoidal blanks overlies a portion of said pentagonal blanks from said line of jointure to that side of said octagon which is parallel to said line of jointure; and attaching belt attaching straps to the corners of said octagon at the ends of said sides which are perpendicular to said line of jointure and leg attaching straps to the corners of said octagon at the ends of said sides which are parallel to said line of jointure.

4. In an undergarment having a waist enclrcling belt, a body member open at each of its sides for the entire length thereof and comprising two spaced apart walls merging into a crotch and combining to form two open sided leg members below said crotch, said body member comprising two pieces of cloth each of which is substantially pentagonal in shape and each of which has a substantially semicircular cutout formed therein intermediate the outer ends of two successive sides, joined together along the bounding edge of said semicircular cutout; four belt attaching straps each attached at its upper end to said waist encircling belt and at its lower end to an upper edge of one of said bounding walls; a leg attaching strap attached to the corners of each of said leg members; and cooperating means carried by at least one of said leg attaching straps for detachably attaching said leg attaching strap.

5. In an undergarment having a waist encircling belt, a body member open at each of its sides for the entire length thereof and comprising two spaced apart walls merging into a crotch' and combining to form two open sided leg members below said crotch, said body member being formed from two pieces of cloth each of which is substantially pentagonal in shape and each of which has a substantially semicircular cutout formed therein intermediate the outer ends of two successive sides, joined together along the bounding edge of said semicircular cutout; reinforcing pieces positioned in said body member and extending from said crotch downwardly into each of said leg members; four belt attaching straps each attached at its upper end to said waist encircling belt and at its lower end to one of the upper corners of said bounding walls; a continuous leg attaching strap fixedly attached at each of its ends to the corners of one of said leg members; a leg attaching strap formed of two elements fixedly attached to the corners of the second of said leg members at one of the ends of each of said elements; and cooperating attaching means carried by the free end of each of said two elements for detachably attaching said two elements.

BENJAMIN LASKIN. 

